Ministry of Defence

Armed Forces: Disciplinary Proceedings

Lord Lexden: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the remarks of Baroness Williams of Trafford on 19 December 2016 (HL Deb, col 1477), whether the relevant statutes relating to military offences have now been identified; and if so, how they will be added to the list of service disciplinary offences set out in the Policing and Crime Bill.

Earl Howe: A very large number of Army statutes which might also include further relevant offences including buggery offences have been identified which predate the Army Act 1881. These include the annual Mutiny Acts that applied the Articles of War and reach back to, at least, 1689. As my noble Friend, Baroness Williams of Trafford, indicated at Third Reading of the Policing and Crime Bill on 19 December 2016 (Official Report, column 1477), we are continuing to research this issue. Further primary legislation would be needed to add to the list of Service disciplinary offences set out in what is currently clause 166 of the Policing and Crime Bill and we will continue to explore suitable opportunities for this.

Army: Officers

Lord Pearson of Rannoch: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many lieutenants and second lieutenants there are currently in the British Army; and how many there were in each of the last five years.

Earl Howe: The numbers of lieutenants and second lieutenants in the British Army is shown below. The figures are taken from the Joint Personnel Administration system and show the numbers of Service personnel paid at each rank.   Paid RankPaid Rank  Lieutenant2nd LieutenantApril 2011 1,440830April 2012 1,520730April 2013 1,560650April 2014 1,530600April 2015 1,700500April 2016 1,560550December 2016 1,070510 Source: Defence Statistics (Army)Notes/Caveats:The figures are for Regular Army only and therefore exclude Gurkhas, Full Time Reserve Service and Mobilised Reserves. Figures have been rounded to 10. Figures ending in "5" have been rounded to the nearest multiple of 20.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Hong Kong: Politics and Government

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the government of China regarding the reported assaults on Nathan Law, an elected member of the Hong Kong Legislative Council, by pro-Beijing activists.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The UK has not raised this issue with the Chinese Government. Under the Sino-British Joint Declaration and the Basic Law, law enforcement is a matter for the Hong Kong authorities. We understand that the Hong Kong Police have made arrests in connection with this incident and are conducting further investigations.

Burma: Rohingya

Baroness Goudie: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the Ambassador to Burma has had one or more meetings with Aung San Suu Kyi regarding the treatment of Rohingya citizens.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: We are deeply concerned about the treatment of the Rohingya community in Rakhine State of Burma. The British Ambassador discussed the situation in Rakhine with State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi on 21 December. He called for an urgent resumption of humanitarian access and steps to improve the situation on the ground. I also raised our concerns direct with the Ministers of Defence and Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, when I visited Burma from 9-11 November. In those meetings I called for an urgent resumption of humanitarian aid and an independent investigation into allegations of recent human rights violations conducted by the security forces. The Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my Hon. Friend the Member for Reading West (Alok Sharma), raised our concerns with the Burmese Minister of Construction when he visited London on 29 November.

Burma: Rohingya

Baroness Goudie: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the Burmese ambassador to the UK has been summoned to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to respond to the actions taken by the government of Burma and Burmese military in relation to the Rohingya people.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: We have not summoned the Burmese Ambassador. I raised our concerns directly with the Minister of Defence and Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, when I visited Burma from 9-11 November. In those meetings I called for an urgent resumption of humanitarian aid and an independent investigation into allegations of recent human rights violations conducted by the security forces. The Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my Hon. Friend the Member for Reading West (Alok Sharma), raised our concerns with the Burmese Minister of Construction when he visited London on 29 November. Our Ambassador also raised the situation with State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi on 21 December.

Burma: Rohingya

Baroness Goudie: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will raise with the government of Burma the persecution of Rohingya people and reports of torture and murder by the military.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: We have raised our concerns over the treatment of the Rohingya people with the Government of Burma over many years. In response to the most recent violence, I raised our concerns direct with the Ministers of Defence and Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, when I visited Burma from 9-11 November. In those meetings I called for an urgent resumption of humanitarian aid and an independent investigation into allegations of recent human rights violations conducted by the security forces. The Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my Hon. Friend the Member for Reading West (Alok Sharma), raised our concerns with the Burmese Minister of Construction when he visited London on 29 November. We will continue to raise our concerns at every appropriate opportunity.

Northern Ireland Office

Belfast Agreement

Lord Laird: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the concept of parity of esteem as outlined in the Belfast Agreement 1998 applies to those members of the security forces who live in Great Britain and are currently facing investigation of incidents that took place in the civil unrest in Northern Ireland.

Lord Dunlop: First, I would like to make clear my admiration for the dedication, professionalism and courage shown by soldiers and police officers in Northern Ireland throughout the Troubles. As we made clear in our 2015 Northern Ireland manifesto, this Government will never forget the debt of gratitude we owe them and will never accept any form of equivalence between those who upheld democracy and the rule of law, and those who engaged in terrorism or other forms of paramilitary activity. This Government understands the concept of parity of esteem, as set out in the 1998 Belfast Agreement, as placing a general obligation on the UK Government to govern in the interests of the whole community and to treat people of different traditions fairly and with equal respect. In the Agreement it is clearly expressed and defined in relation to people living in Northern Ireland. As a general obligation there is no definition of particular circumstances in which it does or does not apply. The vast majority of the more than 250,000 men and women who served in the Royal Ulster Constabulary and the Armed Forces in Northern Ireland during the Troubles carried out their duties with exemplary professionalism. However, everyone is equal under the law and, where there is evidence of wrongdoing, this should be investigated. The current mechanisms for investigating the past do not reflect that 90 per cent of deaths in the Troubles were caused by terrorists and are disproportionately focussed on the actions of soldiers and police. That is why this Government supports the full and faithful implementation of the Stormont House Agreement to bring a new, balanced, proportionate and fair approach to dealing with Northern Ireland’s past.

Attorney General

Corruption

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many successful prosecutions for corruption overseas there have been of (1) British companies,and (2) individuals, in the last five years.

Lord Keen of Elie: Official data regarding prosecutions are held by the Ministry of Justice, but the department does not record it in a form which allows it to distinguish between overseas bribery and domestic bribery. Whilst not official data, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) and the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) record data for their own management information purposes. In the last five years, the SFO has successfully prosecuted three British companies and 10 individuals, nine of whom were British citizens, for bribery or corruption overseas (offences under the Bribery Act 2010 or the Prevention of Corruption Act 1906). In addition to this the SFO has secured three Deferred Prosecution Agreements with British companies in the past two years for overseas corruption offences. The first agreement included a financial penalty of $25m, plus SFO’s full costs; the second resulted in financial orders of £6.6m and the most recent one was for £497.25m plus interest, as well as a payment of the SFO’s full costs. CPS’s data measures the outcome of prosecutions against defendants but not on the outcome against individual offences. This information could only be obtained by examining CPS case files, which would incur disproportionate cost.

Department for Education

Pupils: Personal Records

Lord Storey: To ask Her Majesty’s Government which government departments have access to the National Pupil Database.

Lord Nash: The data in the National Pupil Database helps give us a clear picture of how the school system is working. We take privacy extremely seriously and access to sensitive data is strictly controlled. The Department for Education only shares NPD data where there is a legal basis to do, and once robust information security standards have been met. The Government Departments including their agencies / Non-Departmental Public Bodies that currently have access to data extracts from the NPD data tables are: The Department for EducationHome OfficeMinistry of JusticeCabinet OfficeDepartment for Culture, Media and SportDepartment of HealthDepartment for Work and PensionsDepartment for Communities and Local GovernmentWelsh Government DfE makes available a summary of uses of NPD data, and this is available on https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-pupil-database-requests-received Separately, where the police or Home Office have clear evidence that a child may be at risk or evidence of criminal activity, limited data including a pupil’s address and school details (but excluding the recently collected nationality / country of birth information) may be requested from the National Pupil Database. The MoU between the DfE and the Home Office sets out how this process works. It is right that we share this data if it helps to keep a child safe from harm or to prevent a crime. A copy of this MoU is available in the house library.

Pupils: Personal Records

Lord Judd: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the Department for Education has undertaken to provide personal data of pupils, including their names, addresses, recent addresses, school addresses and attendance records, to the Home Office specifically for immigration enforcement purposes; and, what steps are they taking to ensure that the collection and transfer of such data do not encourage stigmatisation or racial profiling.

Lord Nash: The data in the National Pupil Database helps give us a clear picture of how the school system is working. We take privacy extremely seriously and access to sensitive data is strictly controlled. Allowing vetted researchers and academics access to excerpts of this data under strictly controlled conditions, can help the development and improvement of our education system for the benefit of all. As has always been the case, where the police or Home Office have clear evidence that a child may be at risk or there is evidence of criminal activity, including illegal immigration, limited data including a pupil’s address and school details may be requested from the National Pupil Database. It is right that we share this data if it helps to keep a child safe from harm or to prevent a crime. This does not include nationality and country of birth information recently introduced into school census, which is not placed into the National Pupil Database. The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the DfE and the Home Office sets out how this process works and the data which is shared. A copy of the MoU between the Home Office and the DfE, which covers the sharing of limited information between those parties, is available in the house library.

Higher Education

Lord Willis of Knaresborough: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what arrangements are in place for students who leave a university prior to completing their course to have their learning accredited in order to facilitate future transfer to another course at a different higher education institution.

Viscount Younger of Leckie: The Government is committed to improving the flexibility of higher education provision and student choice. We are currently considering the evidence gathered via the recent call for evidence on Accelerated Courses and Switching University or Degree, and engaging stakeholders, to understand arrangements currently in place for supporting student transfer and any barriers to take up.There are no regulatory barriers to students choosing to leave university prior to completing their course and having their learning accredited by a different higher education institution.English universities are independent, autonomous bodies and it is their responsibility to decide how to recognise or accredit prior learning so they admit students who are able to succeed at that institution or on a particular course. Government has no power to interfere in university admissions.Sound practice in English university recruitment, selection and admission is underpinned by the principles of fair admissions, or Schwartz principles, and the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education’s UK Quality Code.

Universities: Admissions

Lord Willis of Knaresborough: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the extent to which students have been admitted to Russell Group universities having had their prior learning from other institutions accredited to allow entry mid-course; and what evidence they used to support that assessment.

Viscount Younger of Leckie: The Higher Education Funding Council for England and Higher Education Statistics Agency do not gather information on students who have had their prior learning from other institutions accredited to allow entry mid-course. The issue of improving understanding of student transfer was raised during our recent the call for evidence on Accelerated Courses and Switching University or Degree. We received over 4,500 responses to this and published a summary of the evidence we gathered on 20 December 2016.

Higher Education: Admissions

Lord Willis of Knaresborough: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many students who dropped out of English universities in 2010–11 returned to higher education within three years.

Viscount Younger of Leckie: The information requested can only be made available at disproportionate cost.

Ministry of Justice

Immigration: Appeals

Lord Ahmed: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the average time taken for immigration and asylum tribunals to process and hear cases.

Lord Ahmed: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many cases are awaiting appeal hearings at immigration and asylum tribunals in England and Wales.

Lord Ahmed: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the speed at which cases are handled in immigration and asylum tribunals in England and Wales.

Lord Keen of Elie: The average waiting times for immigration and asylum appeals in 2015/16 was 34 weeks.As at 30 September 2016 there were 57,290 registered appeals awaiting hearing. This figure is based on internal management information which is not subject to the same rigorous verification processes as published data.We do everything we can to avoid unnecessary delay in the Immigration & Asylum Tribunal and we have provided an additional 4,950 tribunal sitting days for this financial year to ensure current caseloads continue to decrease. We are keeping performance under close review.

Family Proceedings

Lord Beecham: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will participate in the consultationlaunched by the President of the Family Divisionon proposed changes relating to public hearings in family law cases.

Lord Keen of Elie: The last consultation document on transparency in the family courts the President issued was published in August 2014 and he has not published another since. A recent article published in a national newspaper which suggested otherwise was incorrect.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport

Voluntary Work: Young People

Lord Crisp: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many young people who have taken part in the National Citizen Service engage in full-time volunteering opportunities with organisations such as City Year UK, Volunteering Matters and vInspired, after taking part in the National Citizen Service.

Lord Crisp: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what proportion of young people in the United Kingdom who are classed as Not in Education Employment or Training are engaged in full-time volunteering.

Lord Ashton of Hyde: Government does not hold this information. However the independent evaluation of the National Citizen Service (NCS) in 2014 demonstrates that NCS graduates give back an additional 6 hours volunteering per month to their community. On 14 December 2016 the Minister for Civil Society announced a review into full time social action by young people. The review will look at how to increase participation in full-time social action by reviewing the opportunities and barriers faced by organisations supporting young people. The advisory panel will include experts from the private and voluntary sectors and is expected to make recommendations to the Minister for Civil Society by October 2017.

BBC Board

Lord Porter of Spalding: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ashton of Hyde on 5 December 2016 (HL3691), whether a representative from local government will be eligible to join the new BBC Board in order to help ensure that the BBC meets its public purpose of helping audiences to engage fully with major regional and local issues.

Lord Ashton of Hyde: The BBC Board as a whole is required by the Royal Charter to ensure that the BBC promotes all of its Public Purposes, including helping people from all parts of the UK to understand and engage with the world around them. The Charter also sets out that there must be a 'Nation Member' for each of the UK’s four constituent nations who will have a specific role in ensuring that the BBC is both engaging with and reflecting all regions and diverse communities of the whole of the UK. Representatives from local government are eligible to apply for any of the roles on the Board which are currently being advertised.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Nature Conservation

Lord Judd: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they are taking to ensure that all sensitive and important areas for biodiversity and wildlife in National Parks, sites of special scientific interest and elsewhere are fully protected and maintained after the UK leaves the EU.

Lord Gardiner of Kimble: The Government will soon be publishing and consulting on a green paper on the environment and our ambition is to become the first generation to leave the natural environment in a better state than we found it. The Government is considering the impacts of the decision to leave the EU, including future arrangements for existing legislation. Any future changes in the law will be subject to Parliamentary scrutiny. The Prime Minister has announced our plans for a Great Repeal Bill that will convert current EU law, including environmental law, into domestic legislation. This will give consumers, workers and businesses as much certainty as possible by maintaining the existing laws. The UK will continue to be bound by and implement the obligations under the international multilateral environmental agreements to which we are a Party.

Dogs: Imports

Baroness Byford: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to prevent the sale of imported puppies from Eastern Europe which (1) have not been vaccinated, and (2) have been passed off by the sellers as bred in the UK.

Lord Gardiner of Kimble: All dogs imported from other European Union Member States are required to have a valid rabies vaccination and a pet passport which gives details of both the vaccine and the veterinarian who administered it. Prior to embarkation, dogs are examined by an Official Veterinarian in the country concerned who must certify that the animal is fit to travel. The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) also carry out checks on imported dogs and puppies, including those that have been imported for sale. As part of these checks, APHA must ensure that the dogs and puppies have had the appropriate rabies vaccination. Dogs and cats imported from third countries go through a similar process but the health preparation requirements and certification documents may differ according to the disease status in the country concerned. It is important that those buying a puppy know where it comes from and where it was born. The Government has published guidance for buyers on the GOV.UK website. This includes a recommendation that those buying a puppy should ask to see it with its mother and the rest of the litter. If anyone suspects that a seller of an imported dog or puppy is claiming that it was bred in the United Kingdom then they should contact trading standards in their local authority.

Department for Communities and Local Government

Local Government: Devolution

Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how the issues of energy generation and distribution are being considered during the discussions on devolution agreements with cities.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: The Government recognise that national and local measures are key to moving to a low carbon economy. We have agreed 8 ground-breaking devolution deals with areas across the country – including the Liverpool City Region, Greater Manchester and Tees Valley in the Northern Powerhouse – with the majority having energy and low carbon related commitments.We have been clear that devolution deals are bespoke and that we are not taking a one-size fits-all approach, including on energy issues. Our bottom-up approach has allowed local areas to have the powers that they need to drive growth and deliver for their citizens.

Cabinet Office

Public Sector: Harassment

Lord Porter of Spalding: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Chisholm of Owlpen on 20 December 2016 (HL4029) concerning threatening behaviour against those holding public office, how they will keep the House updated on this issue.

Lord Young of Cookham: We will continue to consider this matter and will keep the House updated of future developments in the most appropriate way.

Department of Health

Capita

Lord Colwyn: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of Capita's performance in administering the National Dental Performers List.

Lord Colwyn: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they are taking to help resolve any issues Capita is experiencing managing the process of applications to the National Dental Performers List.

Lord O'Shaughnessy: Capita has made NHS England aware of a number of issues involving the National Dental Performers List process. Immediate action has been taken to put in place plans to recover the services, and NHS England has provided a team of experts to support Capita’s work, both in managing existing functions more effectively and improving the service for the future. The actions Capita are taking to stabilise and recover the service include: - Recruiting additional staff and developing staff knowledge through further training and development supported by external experts;- Standardising the processes used and work tracking tools;- More proactive communication to applicants regarding the progress of their application; and- Developing the internal integrated work management system to enable Performers List work to be tracked and work-flowed through the process. NHS England is meeting with Capita on a weekly basis to oversee the delivery of these plans and to ensure the right improvements are in place. My hon. Friend, the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Nicola Blackwood), will continue to work with Capita and NHS England to ensure that services are restored to an acceptable and sustainable standard.

Capita

Lord Colwyn: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the current length of time dentists applying to join the National Dental Performers List have to wait to have their application processed by Capita.

Lord O'Shaughnessy: NHS England is responsible for the National Dental Performers list and currently do not hold information centrally on how many applications have been received from individuals wishing to join the National Dental Performers list. Information on the length of time to process applications is therefore currently not available.

Prescriptions

Lord Bradshaw: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the widespread adoption of the Electronic Prescription Service by pharmacies, whether an audit has been undertaken to determine the impact on the cost of providing prescriptions; and if so, whether those costs rose or fell, and by how much.

Lord O'Shaughnessy: The impact of the Electronic Prescription Service (EPS) has been extensively validated and continuously reviewed by NHS Digital, including for pharmacies and other dispensers. For example, provisional findings from an independent audit, which measure cost in time rather than a monetary value, have identified time savings per prescription dispensed. These findings have yet to be finalised and the final audit report is expected to be published in due course. Greater efficiencies, an improved audit trail and better customer service have also been found by NHS Digital and the independent audit, in respect of pharmacies using EPS.

Primary Health Care

Lord Laming: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to conduct a major review of the purpose, financing and effectiveness of Primary Care Services in the NHS.

Lord O'Shaughnessy: The Department does not currently have plans to undertake a major review of the purpose, financing and effectiveness of primary care services in the National Health Service. On 21 April 2016, NHS England published the General Practice Forward View, a package of support to help get general practice back on its feet, improve patient care and access, and invest in new ways of providing primary care. The General Practice Forward View sets out that we are investing an extra £2.4 billion a year for general practice services by 2020-21 – this represents a 14% increase in real terms. The overall investment for general practice includes a £500 million national 'turnaround' package to support general practitioner practices. This is part of a wider package of support for general practice, which contains measures to help boost the workforce, drive efficiencies in workload and modernize primary care infrastructure and technology. A copy of the General Practice Forward View is attached.



General Practice Forward View
(PDF Document, 1.77 MB)

Pensioners: Health Services

Lord Laird: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what are the current arrangements for quantifying and registering EU/EEA pensioners living in the UK and those close to pensionable age, for the purposes of reclaiming their healthcare costs from their home countries; what were the total costs and payments last year to those countries, and what are their plans to reform the UK counting system.

Lord O'Shaughnessy: Under the relevant European Union regulations, European Economic Area (EEA) countries and Switzerland are obliged to pay for the healthcare costs of those in receipt of state pension or other certain exportable benefits in their countries (based on pension and benefit eligibility, not nationality), but who live elsewhere in the EEA or Switzerland, including the United Kingdom. EEA state pensioners moving to the UK, unless insured by the Republic of Ireland, need to apply for an S1 form in their own country. Once issued, the form is registered by being sent to the Overseas Healthcare Team at the Department for Work and Pensions to be processed. EU rules set out the framework for determining which EEA country is ‘responsible’ for an individual under EU law. This is commonly referred to as ‘insurability’. The UK has a residency-based healthcare system which means that “insurability” is generally determined by residency (being “ordinarily resident”). Ordinarily resident means, broadly speaking, living in the UK on a lawful basis and properly settled for the time being, which would include EEA and Swiss residents below their respective state pensionable age but not in receipt of state pensions. We do not make payments to EEA member states for their state pensioners living in the UK but we claim from those member states for those in receipt of EEA member state pension. The table below provides information about how much was paid to the UK for individuals in receipt of state pension from another EEA country or Switzerland. Austria£166,179.94 Belgium£436,334.57 Bulgaria£321,271.15 Cyprus£0.00 Czech Republic£32,419.18 Denmark (Waiver)1N/A Estonia Waiver 2£0.00 Finland 3£0.00 France£434,456.14 Germany£1,115,260.40 Greece£32,711.24 Hungary (Waiver) 3£0.00 Iceland£0.00 Ireland£4,423,115.93 Italy£80,217.23 Latvia£930.95 Liechtenstein£0.00 Lithuania£512,024.85 Luxembourg£39,428.73 Malta (Waiver)3N/A Netherlands£2,604,068.06 Norway (Waiver)2£0.00 Poland£2,173,380.73 Portugal£172,785.11 Romania£1,086.11 Slovakia£3,723.82 Slovenia£2,190.49 Spain£165,462.33 Sweden£456,332.82 Switzerland£101,592.23 Total£13,274,972.02  Source: Resource Accounting and Budgeting exercise. Totals are based on estimates of the costs of EEA healthcare claims made annually for the purposes of provisions made in the Department of Health accounts in accordance with Treasury resource accounting rules. Notes: Waiver is an agreed intentional relinquishment of healthcare costs between Member States. 1 Denmark – Full waiver2 Estonia and Norway – Waiver, excepting former Article 22.1c (patient referral) & Article 55.1c (industrial injury) claims3 Finland, Hungary and Malta – Waiver, excepting former Article 22.1c (patient referral) claims Since its inception in 2013, the Department of Health’s Visitor and Migrant NHS Cost Recovery Programme has been working to design and implement key improvements to ensure that those people who should pay for National Health Service care in England are identified and charged. The Department has also been working closely with the NHS to improve rates of recovery where these healthcare costs are the responsibility of other member states of the EEA via the European Health Insurance Card, S1 and S2 mechanisms.